Target apparatus.



C. H. BRAINARDL TARGET APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED APR.12.19|8.

1 ,286,215. Patented Dec. 3, i918.

CLARENCE H. BRAINARD, 0F ALBANY, NEW YORK.

Specification o1' Letters Patent.

TARGET APPARATUS.

Application led April 12, 1918. Serial No. 228,183.

To all wzom t may concern:

Be it known that I, CLARENCE H. BRAIN- ARD, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Albany, in the county of Albany, State of New York,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Target Apparatus;and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The present invention relates to target apparatus and particularly to asectional target preferably associated with means for indicating at adesired place or places the relative position of the section struck bythe bullet or other missile.

The object of the invention is to provide apparatus of this kind capableof using a target of any desired form or contour, set at any desiredangle or position -for receiving bullets or other kinds of missiles fromthe front or above. The target has a plurality of open-ended receivingpockets with converging walls, and a plurality of plungers in registrywith the rear or small openings, the pockets having any desired shape orarrangement to correspond with army stand.- ards, or otherwise. Ifdesired, the indicating mechanism may be actuated by the movement of theplungers to indicate the relative position on the target of theparticular plunger struck by a bullet, and a bullet receptacle incommunication with the pockets may be provided to collect the bullets asthey fall from the plungers.

Preferably, each plunger has an angularly-divergent impact face pressedover the rear open end of the'pocket by aI spring capable of absorbingsubstantially all the kinetic energy of the moving bullet upon impactwith the plunger. By sloping the impact face rearwardly and downwardly,the'bullets drop without substantial force into the bullet receptacle.At the same time the movement of the (plunger against the spring may beutilize to actuate the indicator as by closing a switch arranged in thepath of the moving plunger and electrically connected in the circuitwith one or more annunciators.

hether or not the indicating mechanism or the bullet receptacle is used,my invention comprehends the provision in a sectional target of aplurality of shock absorbing plungers each having a spring tending toYhold the impact face seated in registry with the rear opening of thepocket and associated with compressible material arranged to assist instopping the moving plunger upon excessive impact..

Patented Dec. 3, 191s.l

n the accompanying drawings illustraty ing the preferred form of Figure1 is section, of the my invention, a vertical elevation, partly in andillustrates diagrammatically the elec- I each separating wall isprovided around its entire periphery with sharp-edged hardened steelstrips 8 capable of withstanding impact of shell-tired bullets withoutdamage and d providing. sharply-detarget.

Each pocket 4 is provided with a plunger adapted to absorb the shockofimpact, to

spring 26 against the rear faces of the pocket walls, as shown, and anangularly-divergent impact face 10 in registry with the rear opening 7of the pocket. The impact face slopes rearwardly and downwardly in suchmanner that substantially all the kinetic energy of the moving bullet isabsorbed upon impact before the bullet is deflected downwardly. Theimpact member is mounted on the rod 11 which is journaled through theconnecting wall 12 and also through a rigidly secured bearing block 13having a cupshaped cavity at 14. In this cavity is arran ed a collar l5fastened on the rod, and a rub er pad or stop 16 adapted to engage thecollar upon excessive movement of'the rod due to unusually severeimpact.

The bullet receptacle 17 communicates through openings 18 with all thepockets, so

that all of the bullets striking the target are collected there and maybe removed at any time through a suitably arranged door.

'Ihe indicating mechanism includes one or more indicators of annunciatorform like that shown at 19 in Fig. 2. The face of each annunciator issectionalized like the target and each section is provided with a drop2O corresponding with the similarly located pocket of the target. Behindeach plunger there is arranged an electric switch 21 having an upwardlyprojecting push button 22 in the path of movement of the rod 11. Therear end of this rod is beveled as shown at 23 so as to reliably engagethe switch contacts and, therebyV close the electrical circuit formed bythe wires 24, the battery or other source of electric current 25, andthe annunciator magnet controlling the corre-v drop.

spondin Il be observed that the converging It wi i walls of the pocketsare necessarily met at an acute angle by a bullet ired at the targetfrom any point, and that by suitable mod1- fication in a manner known tothose skilled in the art, the target may be readily adapted for use withbullets or .missiles fired or dropped from above..

What I claim is:

1. In target apparatus, a sectional target having a plurality ofopen-ended receiving pockets with converging walls, a plurality of shockabsorbing plungers each registering with. the rear opening of a pocketand having an angularly-divergent bullet-deliecting impact face, abullet receptacle in communication with saidv pockets to receive thehullets delected from the impact face of the plungers, and means forindicating the relative position of the plunger moved by 1m-.

pact.

2. In target apparatus, a sectional target Legame downwardly, a bulletreceptacle in commu- Y nication with said pockets to receive the bulletsdeflected from the impact face of the plungers, and means for indicatingthe relative position of the `plunger moved by impact.

3. In target apparatus, a sectional target having a plurality ofopen-ended receiving pockets with converging walls, a vplurality ofplungers each having animpact face at its front end in registry with therear opening of a pocket and a beveled actuating face at its rear end, aplurality of electrical switches each arranged in the path of thebeveled face of a plunger to be actuated upon movement thereof, and anindicator electrically connected to said switches to indicate therelative position of the plunger moved by impact.

4. In tar et apparatus; a having a p urality of open-ended receivingpockets with converging walls; and for each pocket a shock absorbingplunger comprising an impact receiving member, a rod supporting saidmember, a rigid bearing block having a bearin through which said rod isarranged to sli e and having a cup-shaped cavity, a collar fastened onsaid rod and located within said cavity, a spring holding the impactmember seated in registry with the rear opening of the bullet-receivinpocket, and compressiblermaterial arranged in the cup-shaped cavity toengage said co1'- sectional target lar upon excessive movement of theplunger. l

